Mary Lou Who?

I got to do some pretty incredible things at this year’s
Dragon*Con. The most exciting of which is not going to mentioned in this post. It's an awesome interview, and I'm super excited to show it to you. Coming soon!! Because of
the crazy scheduling inherent to the weekend, doing the interview meant I had
to miss the annual parade. I had planned to wear Miss Martian from “Young
Justice” with my cosplay group, TL;DR, and was sad I
didn’t get to participate. But I’d say it was worth it! If you missed the
parade too, I highly recommend you watch this great video by the guys at
Bleeding Cool!

I was also really excited to participate in Dragon*Con in a
new capacity. I’ve always attended this convention as a cosplayer and member of
the press, but this year I was also a panelist! I sat on three discussion
panels for the Stargate Multiverse Track and had a great
time during all three! By Dragon*Con standards, they were pretty small panels,
but we had great audiences. Team Dynamics, The Doctors of Stargate, Sexism in
Stargate actually came to be highly debated topics. For each panel, the
participants included highly knowledgeable members of the Stargate Multiverse
Track staff who led quite interesting discussion. Ken Spivey of The Ken Spivey Band joined me as a panelist for the Sexism in Stargate panel
as well. He brought a unique point of view as the only male member of that
panel and though his interest in philosophy. If you missed it, here’s video
from that panel:

Ken gave another great performance during his band’s concert
on Sunday afternoon. The only thing I didn’t like about his show was that they
needed to be in a bigger room! Quite a line had formed by the time the doors
opened, and at least as many fans were turned away as got in. Next year I hope
the Brit Track moves the concert so more attendees can experience the Doctor
Who themed fun. If you haven’t heard The Ken Spivey Band’s music, you can hear
their Celtic Time Lord Rock on Spotify and of course order their CD on Amazon.
Here’s a peek at this year’s performance:

While attending panels isn’t generally my favorite thing
about conventions (we all know I’m there for the costumes and the parties), two
of my most beloved celebrities attended Dragon*Con this year and I got to see
them both! As evidenced by my panels for the Stargate Multiverse Track,
Stargate has been a big part of my life for a while now. It was the first show
I owned on DVD in its entirety, and I’m a Stargate evangelist surprisingly to
the delight of my non-geek friends. Richard Dean Anderson, or Colonel Jack
O’Neill (also known as my favorite Stargate character), gave a great panel with
several other members of the various multiverse casts. He doesn’t do
conventions every often, which is why I was so excited to see him. He had some quite
interesting points of view on the show’s direction and filming. Robert Picardo,
most widely known as The Doctor on “Star Trek: Voyager,” was on that panel as
well, and I had no clue how hilarious he was! He was full of quotes and one
liners, and really livened up the panel in a way I had never seen before. Get a
look at that romp here: http://spacegypsies.com/archives/7874

I also got to see “The X-Files’” Agent Dana Scully, Gillian
Anderson! “The X-Files” was my first non-anime fandom, and the first time I
learned about “shipping.” Let’s just say it opened a whole new world to my
young eyes. For years Gillian Anderson has been a rarity at conventions, so
this was not to be missed. She’s been doing mostly theatre since the end of
“The X-Files,” but she was particularly excited about a great new project
called “The Fall,” due to premiere on BBC Two in April! She told a few stories
about her old “The X-Files” days too, which were incredibly interesting to
hear. Catch a bit of it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ET2EmlJUrcA&playnext=1&list=PLuUL7WIBk69Vdcp0je-vNReNkpAV5qGeo&feature=results_main

As most of you know, I worked with Earth Station One for
their Dragon*Khan Report leading up to the convention this year. We did one big
group broadcast straight from the con. It was super cool finally meeting
everyone in person! Those guys are really great, and totally know their stuff.
Check out that episode here:

Though I missed being Miss Martian in the parade,
I did get to attend a Young Justice photoshoot! It was super fun to meet other
lovers of the series and get some fantastic photos!! I also met another Miss
Martian who did the comic version of her outfit. Here we are together:

I’ll see if I can’t rustle up a few other photos from the
con and share them with all of you.
All in all, Dragon*Con was a great convention. They always
get the best guests and the best attendees. As always, I’ll encourage you to
go, both new and old members of the con scene. Do it for the kittens.

Today I am leaving for Dragon*Con. Because Wednesday is the new Thursday, and all the cool kids will be there. Yes, despite the fact that the convention doesn't technically start until Friday. But who cares?! There's so much to see and do before the con even begins! I'm really looking forward to tonight (ZOMG IT'S TONIGHT) and getting to see my con family for the first time in a while! I plan to stay up late, have lots of drinks, and have a grand old time!
Thursday evening I'll be hitting the sack a little earlier, because I will be appearing on TV on Friday morning!! And yes, I'll be in costume to help promote Dragon*Con. I'm really excited and super flattered that they would ask me to represent them, and I'll be on with some other really fantastic cosplayers, so I'm very much looking forward to it! If you're in the Atlanta area, watch 11 Alive WXIA Friday Mornings!!
My schedule gets a little crazier come Friday and Saturday, but rest assured I'll be out costuming in the day and partying at night! I'll be hitting a few panels, too, seeing as I'm attending as a reporter. :) I hope to get some really great stuff. I'm mostly excited about Richard Dean Anderson (McGyver and Jack O'Neill from Stargate SG-1) and Gillian Anderson (Scully from The X-Files)!!
I'll also be on three panels for the Stargate Multiverse Track! I'm pumped to get to be a panelist. Friday at 2:30, I'll be on "Team Dynamics," where we'll talk about the various parts of a Stargate team, Sunday at 1:00, I'll be on "The Doctors of Stargate," a discussion of the doctors and their fates, and on Monday at 11:30, I'll appear on "Sexism in Stargate," which is pretty much what it sounds like. I hope to see you guys there! :D
Sunday evening Earth Station One will be doing a live broadcast of the 6th episode of their Dragon*Khan Report, which I've been helping host. The location is yet to be determined, but that should be a pretty fun couple of hours! If I remember, I'll let you know where we are so you might be able to be on the podcast!
As a media professional, I have a couple of celebrity interviews lined up, but I don't want to give anything away! Surprises are fun, right?

This is the trip I plan for all year long, and it doesn't seem like it's here! I was up til 3am packing and finishing costumes...it should feel like Dragon*Con time. I think I've just been looking forward to it for so long I can't believe it's actually happening! I'll get excited when we pack the car, I think. Anyhow, I hope to see you guys at Dragon*Con!!!!

I wrote a post exactly 9 days before Dragon*Con last year, and here it is again this year. NINE DAYS, YOU GUISE. NINE. There's so much left to do! I got a few things finished this weekend - you know those small things that only take 30 minutes that you put off because they'll be so easy and you have more important things to do? And then before you know it you have 20 of those things and 10 hours worth of work on top of everything else? Yeah, I hate those. But I got several finished this weekend, and bought a couple of things I need. I've made a list of everything that needs to get done, and I think it's actually doable. It won't be easy, and I'll probably be working right down to the wire, but I think I can do it.

I'm not sure if I had more or less to do this time last year. GAH!
Plus I've got a mysterious surprise costume I'm considering making. If I have time.
But I'm superduper excited! It's going to be a fabulous time.
I've been working with the Earth Station One guys on a great Dragon*Con prep podcast! Go have a listen!!Episode 1Episode 2Episode 3

I've also got these awesome new business cards to give out at the con! Thanks a ton to Klout and Moo for the box of 50 free cards of my own design! I only had to pay for shipping. I'm really happy with how they turned out, despite my lack of graphic design know-how. The quality of the paper and printing is really fantastic. Definitely ordering from Moo in the future!!

Sometimes things that are most important to you start to fade, and you need a new experience to remind you why you loved them in the first place. I haven't participated with Alpha Gamma Delta in a significant way since I graduated from college in 2010, and I had sort of forgotten why I ever loved it. I think that can happen easily during your last years of college and early years of adult life, if you're not careful. In my case, on top of being burnt out from being on the organization's Executive Council, I had a bit of drama with some of the sisters around my age, and it was easier to stop being around than it was to try to deal with the drama. The last bit of college sorority life I experienced left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, and I had started to forget all the wonderful things the organization had done for me. But that's the great thing about a sorority - it's a lifetime commitment so there are women of every age group still actively involved.

That's what really hit me last week during International Convention. Alpha Gam provides opportunity to really get to know women of all ages, and you already have something in common to start you off. Not many girls I know are friends with women 10, 30, or even 50 years older than they are. And I, and every other Alpha Gamma Delta, have the chance to make those friendships. Some of the most meaningful relationships I have had in my life have been with non-family members who have significantly more life experience than I, and I don't think enough people have friendships like that. At International Convention, I ate dinner with the International Council, sang songs with women from all over the world, and even got to share my experiences with a few collegians. It was so neat to get to know them and their stories. The overwhelming sense of acceptance and sisterhood felt just like the very first time I attended an Alpha Gamma Delta event as a college freshman. I made some really great connections over the course of the week, including getting reacquainted with a few women from my own area. While I love my cosplay friends, sorority sisters are totally different, and it will be great to have women like that in my life again.

The whole point of going in the first place was that I got to sing! Aside from a few mishaps, everything went pretty smoothly. Supposedly someone filmed my songs during Feast of Roses, and I'll post the video as soon as I've got it! Getting to perform for 600 of my sisters really reminded me of how much I love to sing, and how decent I actually am at it! I had forgotten how good singing can make me feel about myself, and I never want to forget that again. Bringing half of International Council to tears just with a song was a really powerful moment. So if you know of any classical or musical theatre gigs in Nashville, send them my way!

I want to say thank you again to the ladies of Alpha Gamma Delta, and especially to the International Council, for welcoming me as the weekend's soloist. It was an amazing experience to participate in Convention at all, let alone the excitement of the Ritual. If you are inclined to ask me back in 2014, I would be honored to say yes.

Some of you who didn't know me in college might not know that I'm in a sorority. Yes, even geek girls can join sororities. I'm a member of Alpha Gamma Delta, and joining was probably the best decision I made in college. I was pretty shy my freshman year, and I likely wouldn't have left my dorm room a whole lot without Alpha Gam there to get me out of my shell. A lot of you might think of that as "buying your friends," and that's fine. All that means is you don't actually understand what dues are used for, and I will not address that argument here. While it's not a huge part of my life anymore, I still occasionally attend alumnae dinners and parties, and just two weeks ago had a beach day with some of my sisters. Greek life helped teach me how to party, too, not gonna lie, which has come in super handy now that I attend conventions regularly. I even had to teach a few of my geek friends how to play beer pong back in March. (I know, right?!) I served as Ritual Coordinator and Vice President Scholarship while at my university, and those positions taught me a lot about respect and leadership; lessons that still prove valuable today.

In two weeks I'll be attending Alpha Gam's International Convention in St. Louis. International Convention is held in a different location every two years, and alumnae and collegiate members of the fraternity come together for training and sisterhood. I've always wanted to go but because of money and scheduling have never before had the opportunity. I've been asked to be the soloist for all ritual events over the course of the weekend. While some of our ritual is secret, some isn't, and most of it involves music. The pieces are beautiful and heartfelt, and they really remind me of college friendships. I'm very excited and deeply honored to have the opportunity to not only sing these songs again, but to sing them for so many of my Alpha Gam sisters. It's going to be an amazing opportunity.

If you're in college now, or will be soon, I encourage you to consider making Greek Life part of your experience. It's not for everybody, and each campus has a different atmosphere, but you might be surprised. I'd never considered going Greek before university, and now I can't imagine my collegiate experience any other way.

This year at MTAC, I got to sit in on a press conference with Jason David Frank, or the Green Ranger! I even asked a few questions...check me out being all awesome and stuff. Anyways, go get a look at the interview over on SpaceGypsies!

If you guys haven't seen it yet on SpaceGypsies, here's my review of ConGlomeration 2012!

MTAC and ConGlomeration were excellent back-to-back weekends. While MTAC was in Nashville, TN, ConGlomeration was held April 13-15 in Louisville, KY. You’ve already heard what I thought about MTAC, and ConGlom was a stark contrast. The average attendees’ age was probably twice what it was at MTAC and it definitely made for a different experience. The parties, for instance, were much cooler. Friday night I attended the Xerps party and got to try what they call “skippy,” a concoction of Keystone Light and who knows what else that’s sure to make your evening turn out either really well or really badly. Regardless of the manner of your night, you’re unlikely to remember much of the experience. Unfortunately for us, Friday evenings’ parties got shut down pretty early due to noise. We hit the hay in preparation for the following night.

"The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword"

We spent the majority of Saturday evening atBarfleet’s party. They’re a pretty awesome organization which uses Starfleet’s organizational structure in an effort to throw awesome convention parties around the Midwest. I must say they accomplished their mission at ConGlom! They served four different colors of punch (I went to bed with an entirely blue mouth…) and kept the music going to late into the night. Because of a friend’s connection to the group we were allowed to stay for the after party. It’s a good thing, too, because I wasn’t ready to go to sleep! We also stopped by a Ghostbuster themed party, which didn’t have as many people, but definitely provided some fantastic drink options. While I didn’t try a sample of each (though that was actually on the poster-sized menu), I had something made with root beer and cinnamon whiskey, which changed my life. A.MA.ZING.

As I expected, the Masquerade was the prime event of the weekend. For such a small convention, there were some surprisingly excellent costumes! Three members of my cosplay group, TL;DR Cosplay, actually won Best in Show! Dorian, Courtney, and Cy dressed as characters from the most recent Zelda game, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Other winners included Arwen from The Lord of the Rings and Codex from The Guild. After the costumes had been presented, the judges began to rate each costume. Meanwhile, Mystic Hips Belly Dance performed for the audience. I especially enjoyed their use of comedy and geek items, including severed heads, a bottle of rum, and a bat’leth. One woman even performed with a live snake!

Codex from "The Guild"

I found only a few negatives to this convention, the most prominent of which was its people-to-space ratio. The Louisville Ramada Plaza Hotel and Conference Center was far too large for the number of attendees. We had to walk almost the full length of the hotel just to get to the conference center and panel rooms, usually passing attendees of the two other conferences being held at the same time. The hotel has a very strange layout and made our first hours there pretty confusing. I wasn’t a big fan of the location, but the convention staff were great. Apparently physically obtaining a media badge is just always going to be a hiccup in my convention weekends, because the folks at the registration table looked at me like I was from Mars, just like the volunteers at MTAC did. They called the woman in charge of registration though, and she knew exactly who I was from our e-mail correspondence. She gave some instructions and I was soon given my badge, which ended up saying “program participant,” rather than “press.” Despite all that, they had great attitudes and were happy to help with anything we needed the rest of the weekend.

Belly dancing with a bat'leth? Suprisingly graceful!

While ConGlom featured a wide range of panels, some of the things I found most interesting were ongoing. First of all, the game room was really great. It was probably better attended than anything else at ConGlom and hosted every analog game I could think of. There was also a surprising number of young children at the convention, due in part, I’m sure, to KidCon, a room completely dedicated to entertaining ConGlom’s youngest guests. It featured everything from visits by the convention’s guests of honor, to storytelling games, to crafts. I think more conventions should feature not only child-friendly programming, but child-intended programming, and I applaud ConGlom for rising to the challenge.

This convention also featured a fantastic dealer room. There were all sorts of items I’d never seen before, and a wide variety of fandoms represented. In the middle of the room was ConGlom’s art show and silent auction, which had some lovely pieces. I almost caved and bought a TARDIS light switch cover, but decided my TARDIS dress, phone cover, and tattoo were probably enough. I was surprised, though, by the level of craftsmanship and talent present at such a small convention. Were I a collector, I would have been delighted.

All around, ConGlom was a great small convention. It had awesome parties, cool people, quality costumes, and beautiful art. I’d definitely recommend it as a low key geek-away-from-home.

About Me

Welcome to the blog! I'm 24 and geeky about everything from opera to the Borg. I've recently graduated college with a degree in classical vocal performance, and I'm figuring out my place in the world. So here's my blog about life, the universe, and everything!

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